Chiefs, Buc-ee’s and Barbie all coming to same area. Is KCK ready for traffic?
Major developments are making their ways into Wyandotte County, and neighbors who are already used to tourist traffic on weekend evenings are waiting to see what that’ll mean for them.
Three major tourism projects, including the Kansas City Chiefs’ $3 billion stadium, a Buc-ee’s travel center and the Barbie and Hot Wheels theme park dubbed Destination KCK are all in the pipeline for the county’s west end.
When completed in coming years, those projects will join a neighborhood of tourism projects already in that area. This includes the Kansas Speedway, the Legends outlet mall, the Kansas City Monarchs’ baseball stadium, Sporting KC, Margaritaville and more.
The area, which has served as an economic driver to the county, is also increasingly residential.
It’s surrounded by newer homes and apartment complexes in neighborhoods along State Avenue and Parallel Parkway, two major county through lines used by commuters passing through on Interstates 70 and 435, tourists visiting the area and residents carrying out their daily lives.
So, what will three major, incoming economic development projects mean for traffic in that portion of Wyandotte County?
Well, that depends on what project we’re talking about and who has oversight over those improvements, according to the Unified Government of Wyandotte County and KCK.
“Each project is evaluated separately based on its location, anticipated traffic generation, required infrastructure improvements and the agencies responsible for the surrounding roadways,” according to the government’s Public Works department.
But, it said, the government is working alongside developers, other city governments, the state transportation department and the Kansas Turnpike Authority to make sure infrastructure is built or improved to account for the traffic those projects might bring in.
“This helps ensure that traffic assumptions and proposed improvements reflect known development activity throughout the broader area rather than considering each project entirely in isolation,” according to the government.
Chiefs
State, team and local officials in December announced that the Chiefs would be moving to Kansas. That move includes game days at a $3 billion, domed stadium to be built in west KCK and a state-of-the-art practice facility and team headquarters in Olathe.
That stadium should be ready for professional use by the 2031 season, they said.
More than 600,000 people attended a Chiefs game at Arrowhead Stadium during the 2025 season, according to ESPN. In a matter of years, several thousand people can be expected to travel to or within Wyandotte County for a home game.
However, Wyandotte County hasn’t yet gotten a formal traffic impact study from the project’s developer, according to Public Works. That study would give the city a better idea of the anticipated effects on traffic in the area and tell it how much it would need to improve area roadways and intersections.
“Once that information is available, the City will work with the developer and its design engineer to ensure appropriate improvements are identified and completed by the developer to support safe and efficient traffic flow,” according to the government.
The Kansas Department of Transportation would oversee any potential future improvements made at the I-435 and State Avenue interchange, or any improvements made to K-7, I-70 or I-435 that could be related to the Chiefs project.
Barbie amusement park
Before the Chiefs come to town, developer Epic Resort Destinations is planning to build Destination KCK, a family-friendly amusement park that’ll sit on the northernmost edge of Bonner Springs.
That project is scheduled to start construction in 2027 and be open for public use by 2030.
The Unified Government and Epic Resort Destinations are working to assess potential traffic improvements surrounding the Destination KCK project. The government is trying to coordinate with the project’s engineer to make sure all items that the Unified Government would be responsible for overseeing are addressed.
The park would be located in Bonner Springs, which has local oversight of the project, meaning the Unified Government would be responsible for sanitary and sewer services and “proposed connections affecting Speedway Boulevard and State Avenue,” it said.
Buc-ee’s center
A 74,000-square-foot Buc-ee’s travel center, soon to be located off I-70 at Village West Parkway, is expected to be completed in the fall of 2027.
Construction began Oct. 1, 2025, and recently prompted road closures at exit and entrance ramps off I-70 at North 110th Street. Those ramps, and an overpass bridge on 110th Street, are scheduled for an Aug. 2 reopening.
Village West Parkway, between Speedway Boulevard and west of Hollywood Casino Boulevard, will be closed through September to make way for construction.
The Kansas Department of Transportation is responsible for work on the overpass and the Kansas Turnpike Authority is responsible for the ramps, according to the government.
Buc-ee’s is planning to improve road conditions along Speedway Boulevard and Village West Parkway to make room for new visitors.
“These plans underwent multiple reviews to confirm that the proposed roadway and traffic-control improvements could accommodate the additional traffic anticipated from the development,” according to the government.
